Project Description: (100 words) Extension staff, in partnership with a well-known Foundation partnered with nine communities to implement a collaborative and asset-based reflection process (Ripple Effects Mapping - REM) to elevate stories of community resilience, provide community benefits and inform organizational planning for future community leadership development programming. These community REM sessions took place from June through September 2024. This presentation will highlight both the process and the results of this innovative community-based project, including a discussion of seven core elements of community resilience that emerged from analysis of the REM data.
Highlighting Stories of Community Resilience Overview (250 words – highlighting connection to conference theme and CDS principles) The Highlighting stories of community resilience project invited rural communities across the State to apply to participate in a Ripple Effects Mapping process to capture the elements and impacts of innovative community development efforts. Ripple Effects Mapping (REM) is a group qualitative evaluation method that produces a visual mind map to tell the story of a program, depicting the effects of a program or initiative. As a participatory method, REM energizes participants, often leading to an increase in community action based on the lessons learned during the evaluation process.
Twenty-three communities applied for this opportunity, 10 were selected and 9 completed the mapping process. Projects were selected to include diversity in community size, region of the state, culture and a broad range of challenges addressed by the community. This presentation is a perfect fit for the conference theme. The seven core elements of community resilience we identified in this project could easily be renamed “pathways to thriving communities.” These core elements were: 1. Building and strengthening connections 2. Innovating and responding creatively 3. Building momentum and sustainability 4. Collaborating and partnering 5. Prioritizing inclusivity 6. Bringing the community along 7. Empowering new leaders
During the presentation, we will offer definitions and examples of each of these elements, and also discuss how our findings reflect and enhance existing literature on community resilience.
